PM Anwar orders police, religious departments to hasten investigations on GISBH-linked welfare homes
BANGI, Sept 13 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has told the police to hasten their investigations on alleged child sexual offences linked to Global Ikhwan Service and Business Holdings (GISBH).
He said the police will conduct investigations following laws that fit.
“With regards to GISBH, let the police do their investigations following existing laws.
“As for religious departments like Jais (Selangor Islamic Religious Department) and at Federal level especially Jakim (Malaysian Islamic Development Department), they have the jurisdiction and channels to conduct investigations and give advice on the case.
“If this is true, investigate the matter, this is very important as it has become a big matter that is linked to abuse of the Islam religion and childcare,” Anwar told reports here at the Al-Imam Mosque here.
The Prime Minister was responding to the police’s recent raid on 20 welfare homes in Negeri Sembilan and Selangor linked to GISBH, where 402 children were rescued with 13 teenaged victims believed to be sodomised.
The Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain had earlier said six suspects, who were arrested earlier, were charged yesterday in Port Dickson.
A woman from this six was charged under Section 31(1)(a) of the Child Act 2001, four of the five men are charged under Section 14 of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, while one more has been charged under Section 354 of the Penal Code, Razarudin said.
As for the 402 children rescued from the welfare homes, Razarudin said 392 children were still undergoing medical health checks, while the remaining children ,who are disabled or autistic, have been placed in the care of the Welfare Department.
He added that health checks will be a priority for these child victims, saying that some do not have identification documents on them.
Razarudin reportedly said that some children are as young as five and were found to have sustained burns inflicted on them by hot objects.
Four investigation papers have been opened, with one already progressing under the Child Act 2001.
Additional investigations are being carried out under the Sexual Offences Act, Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 and Section 354 of the Penal Code.